Navigable vessel-lock



C. 0. FLYNN. NAVIGABLE VESSEL LOCK.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. I8, I92!- Patented Jun 14, 1921.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

NAVIGABLE VESSELJZO GK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 14, 1921.

Application filed March 18, 1921. Serial No. 453,305.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CORNELIUS O. FLYNN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Duluth, in the county of St. Louis and State of lvlinnesota, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Navigable Vessel-Locks, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing. V

This invention relates to ship navigation and has special reference to a novel form of lock gate through which vesesls of commerce are navigated from one water level to another, and also includes a novel method of operating the lock to accomplish the desired result.

The principal object of the invention is to provide such novel means and method whereby vessels may be locked down with greater despatch and ease than heretofore possible during times when there are floatobstructions, such as ice or the like, on the water.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear in the further description thereof.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this application and in which like reference characters indicate like parts:

Figure l is a plan view of a lock for transferring vessels from one level of water to another, and showing the bow end of a vessel approaching said look from up stream; and

Fig. 2 is a central sectional view of Fig. 1.

As well known to sailors, there invariably exists considerable diiiiculty in successfully navigating a lock of this character from up stream when there is any considerable quantity of floating ice on the water, which con ditions are very common both in the spring and fall in such locality as our iakc When a boat has approached a lockfrom up stream under these conditions, her incoming will invariably pack and crowd the ice ahead of her in against the upper gates of the lock, and, when the time arrives for the vessel to enter the look after the water in same has been raised to the level with that in which the vessel is floating, it becomes necessary to manually force the floating ice backwardly away from the gates before they can be opened, and this is eaceedingly arduous of accomplishment as it can only be done from the edges of the dock by men with long poles, which consumes a great deal of time and is very expensive, all of which may be very readily overcome by putting into practice my present invention, which I shall now proceed to describe.

The interior of the lock is illustrated at 1 and in every detail the lock may be of the common ordinary type except that both upper and lower gates are of a slightly modified form and that only in the matter of their being made sectional, or of a plurality of parts. I

Each upper gate is shown as comprising the portions 2 and 3, while each lower gate is shown as comprising the portions 4 and 5, it beingcommon to construct and operate such gates only as a single unit, they being pivotally supported in various ways in the side walls of the lock and are operated, some by hand, and others by mechanical power as the case may be, it being understood that my invention does not reside in any specific form of operating mechanism but rather in the fact that each gate is composed of two independently operated sections, the lower edge of the uppermost section of each gate occurring somewhat below the level of the upstream water, or at least sufficiently below such level to permit of any ordinary floating obstruction, such as cakes of ice, to float over the upper edge of the lowermost section of each gate when the uppermost section is swung open for such purpose. It is obvious that in constructing each gate of two sections in this manner that there shall be provided an overlapping joint as illustrated at 6 in the drawing and which may be of any desired construction, either scarfed or beveled, so that the uppermost section can only be swung upwardly independently of the lower section, and that the operating mechanism for the upper sections of the be operative independently of the lower sections, either by hand or any desired modification of the operating mechaanism, to accomplish same.

this construction it becomes possible to operate the look as follows:

Assuming that the vessel has approached the upper end of the look, as in the position illustrated in the drawing, and a jam of ice exists intermediate of the vessel and the gates of the lock: the lock tender will proceed to fill the lock with water until the same is on a level with that in which the vessel is floating, which will relieve all downward stress upon the upper gates and render com paratively easy the opening or" the upper portions of the upper gates, provided, of course, the ice immediately in front of same is crowded away at least slightly as it is evident that as soon as the upper sections are opened but a little way the ice will begin to relieve itself in floating through into the lock, and, immediately this occurs, the water in the lock may be slightly lowered to increase the incoming action of the ice and relieve the pressure of same, when the upper ections of the gates may be opened still further-or fully opened when all of the ice will quickly flow into the slightly lower level or water in the lock. Then the upper sections of the lower gates in the lock may be swung open and the water in the lock raised only sufficiently high to allow the ice to How on through the lock over the lower portion of the lower gates and be precipitated into the lower body of water. This can be continued until ice obstruction is entirely removed and it is apparent may be accomplished very quickly, when the upper sections of the lower gates are closed and the entire upper gates operated in the usual manner which will permit of the boat 0 ering the lock with no obstruction or into ference whatever and be locked down as is cus toma'ry, the ice obstruction having been reniored above the lock and in the lock, as it is evident that when a boat is floating into a lock with a lot of ice, the nuisance of the accompanying ice is very serious.

From the foregoing it is apparc t that by slril-ful a d timely manipulation oi? the upper sections of the gates during the raising and lowering of the water in the loclz, the floating in and out of the ice may be very quickly and easily accomplished resulting in an entirely no vei method of overcoming such obstruction t commerce, and, having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. A gate for a lock of the character described divided into a plurality of indepenah ently operated horizontal sections.

2. The herein described. method of freeing a navigable lock of floating obstructions in the water above the lock, of first raising the water within the loo to substantially the same level as the water above the lock, then Opening the upper portions of the upper gates to permit the obstruction floating into the look over the lower portions of the upper gates, then opening the upper portions of the lower gates and permitting the obstruction to float over the lower portions of the lower gates of the lock, thus getting rid or" the obstruction without emptying the lock.

3. The herein described method of getting rid of floating obstructions in the water above a navigable lock consisting or first raising the water within the lock to an approximate level with the water above the loci-:, then opening the upper portions of the upper gates oi the lock, slightly lowering the water within the lock, opening the upper portions of the lower gates of the lock, then again raising tl e water within the 1001; so that the floating obstructions will float over the lower portion of both upper and lower gates of the lock and thus pass through the lock. 7

4i. The herein described method or" freeing a navigable lock of floating obstructions in the water above the lock, first raising the water in the loci: to substantially the same level as the water above the lock, then opening the upper portions or the upper gate to permit tne obstructions to float into the loci: over the lower portions or the upper gate, then lowering the water and the floating obstructions in the lock to a level below the upper sections the lower ates, when said sections are opened and the water within the lock again raised to permit or. the obstructions floating over the lower sections of the iii-n01. gates, thus getting rid/of the float mg obstructions without emptying the lock. in testimony whereof I hereunto a ix my signature in the prese of two witnesses.

y 7, CURNELlUS O. FLYNN. Witnesses S. C. Bronson, S. Geo. STEVENS. 

